OLPC Firmware q4a13

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OLPC Firmware Release q4a13

For A2 boards ONLY! Do not install on A1 boards.

Upgrading to q4a13 WILL NOT WORK unless the following patch is applied to the previous firmware:

patch noop ?image-valid $get-file

Again, upgrade will complain about "Wrong machine type" unless the above patch is applied. Caused by the first half of <trac>10616</trac> being applied to unused source.

This version fixes the upgrade problem above, so after you have installed it, upgrading to versions later than q4a13 will work without the patch. This version also fixes longstanding problems with hot-plugging USB devices behind hubs.

It boots Linux and most critical functions work, although there is some flakiness with long USB transfers, especially when trying to fs-update from USB.

Download: q4a13.rom

Known problems

fs-update from USB fails part-way through the transfer, at random places.

Quite a few selftests are missing.

Microphone input does not work in "test /audio".

Changes since q4a12

Open Firmware svn 2156 Built 2011-01-26 17:33:34

  • svn 2153 - Fixed upgrade problem
  • svn 2152, 2154, 2155 - Fixed USB hot-plugging behind hubs

CForth version is eec18abda46fcf144d2693eda5bd8db41d1f8ccc

  • Fixed pin muxing for RTC

WLAN firmware is Libertas thinfirm 9.0.7.p2

  • no change


Which Firmware Do You Have?

The best method for finding out what firmware version you have on a laptop depends on whether the laptop is secured or not, and what operating state it is in.

Unsecured Laptop

Obtain the Ok prompt, the firmware version is displayed in the startup banner, thus: 

 OLPC ..., ... memory installed, ..., S/N SHF7250024D
 OpenFirmware  q4a13 ...   EC Firmware Ver:...
               ^^^^^

You can also obtain the built date: 

 ok .built

This is the date and time that this image of the firmware was built by the release engineer.

Secured Laptop

Power up the laptop with the ✓ (check mark) game button held down. You will be asked to Release the game keys to continue. Release the ✓ (check mark) game button and watch carefully. For a short time the startup banner will be displayed, like this: 

 OLPC ..., ... memory installed, ..., S/N SHF7250024D
 OpenFirmware  q4a13 ...   EC Firmware Ver:...
               ^^^^^

Alternatively, if the laptop is already booted, go to the Sugar home view, click on the icon at the centre of the screen and select "My Settings" then "About my Computer." The firmware version is displayed there.

Alternatively, in the Terminal activity or a text console, type: 

 cat /proc/device-tree/openprom/model

or 

 cat /ofw/openprom/model

With certain older firmware versions, if the operating system will not start, and the laptop is secured, you will not be able to obtain the firmware version using the above methods, so our recommendation is to go ahead and upgrade anyway. The procedure is safe and will not do anything if you already have up-to-date firmware.


Installation

When installing new firmware, you must have a well-charged battery and the AC adapter plugged in. The firmware update code will not proceed otherwise. Possible error messages are:

error message how to fix
AC not present plug in the power cord, check the battery LED is on, then try again.
No external power plug in the power cord, check the battery LED is on, then try again,
No battery plug in the battery, check the latches, then try again, or try another battery,
Battery low allow more time for the battery to charge, then try again, or try another battery.

Unsecured Laptop

This section is for unsecured laptops. Most XO-1.5 and XO-1.75 laptops are unsecured. Most developer XO laptops are unsecured. To unsecure your laptop, follow the instructions at Activation and Developer Keys.

You may install using either:

  • a USB drive or SD card,
  • the laptop's internal drive,
  • a network.

Choose one.

Using a USB drive or SD card

  • check the battery is inserted and locked,
  • check that the power cord is in place and the battery indicator is green,
  • insert the USB drive or SD card,
  • turn on the laptop, and get to the 'ok' prompt. See Ok for more detail. You should see:
ok
  • if the downloaded file is on a USB drive, type:
 flash u:\q4a13.rom
  • if the downloaded file is on an external SD card:
 flash sd:\boot\q4a13.rom
  • wait for the laptop to reboot itself,
  • remove the USB drive or SD card.

(Expert users may remove the USB drive after the message "Got firmware" ... at this stage the file has been read and closed.)

Using the laptop internal drive

An alternate method is to download the firmware file to the laptop internal drive and then install from the internal drive.

  • start the laptop,
  • connect to a wireless or wired network,
su
cd /versions/boot/current/boot/
wget http://dev.laptop.org/pub/firmware/q4a13/q4a13.rom
  • check the battery is inserted and locked,
  • check that the power cord is in place and the battery indicator is green,
  • turn on the laptop, and get to the 'ok' prompt. See Ok for more detail. You should see:
ok
  • if the downloaded file is on an XO-1, type:
flash n:\boot\q4a13.rom
  • if the file is on the internal SD card of an XO-1.5 or XO-1.75:
flash int:\boot\q4a13.rom

Using a network

You will need a compatible USB to ethernet adapter, or an open or WEP wireless access point, connected to the internet.

  • check the battery is inserted and locked,
  • check that the power cord is in place and the battery indicator is green,
  • turn on the laptop, and get to the 'ok' prompt. See Ok for more detail. You should see:
ok
  • if using wireless, type the essid of the wireless network:
essid mynetwork
  • if using a WPA wireless access point, type the WPA key for the network:
wpa passphrase
  • type the flash command using the download link above, but change all slash characters so they are backwards, for example:
flash http:\\dev.laptop.org\pub\firmware\q4a13\q4a13.rom

Secured Laptop

Secured laptops can only use flash firmware that has been signed. All mass-production machines had the latest firmware at the time of manufacture.

Upgrading firmware describes how to upgrade to a newer signed firmware release.

See also

  • Cheat codes for information about how game buttons control startup options.
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